Page 6 of Fighting for Lucy
Since his concern didn't seem sweet, it was more like he was annoyed with her about something, although she had no idea what, she tried to push him away. “Like you didn't pass out, too. I need to find my phone. Unless you have yours and it survived?”
“Don’t have one,” he replied.
Okay, that had to be an outright lie. Who in this day and age didn't have a cell phone? She would have guessed at least everyone from middle school age and up did. “Well then, we for sure need mine.”
Sighing like he was at the end of his rope, Zander gave her the kind of look usually reserved for toddlers pushing their luck. “Let me deal with your arm first, and then we can look for it.”
The deal wasn’t completely unreasonable, and those few extra minutes weren't going to change anything. They had been on the phone with her team when they crashed, so Prey would be looking for them. And since they also knew where she’d been heading, they at least had a place to start.
“Fine,” she agreed, gingerly lifting her broken arm for him to see.
“It’s broken,” he said, trailing a fingertip around the small lump in her forearm.
“No kidding, ghost man.” Zander’s flinch at the nickname was almost imperceptible, but she noticed it and felt bad. She’d meant it as a joke, but it was clear that despite whatever was going on, he did feel bad about hurting his sister by letting her think he was dead. “Sorry.”
His eyes met hers, now carefully wiped free of all emotion. “It’s fine. It’s true. It’s what I am now.”
She had no idea what that meant, and from the way he pressed his lips together, it was clear Zander had no intention of explaining.
“This is going to hurt, but I need to try to get it back in place. No idea when we’ll get you to a hospital.”
It wasn’t her first broken arm, she’d had three, two as a kid when she’d had a seizure, and one as an adult when she’d gone skydiving and messed up her landing. Still, she’d never had the bone pushed back into place while she was conscious. Since there was nothing she could do about it, she merely nodded.
“I’ll do the best I can to get it straight, but I don’t have an x-ray machine to check, might still need surgery later.”
“At least I'm alive,” Lucy reminded him. She had him to thank for it. She still had no idea whether he was trustworthy, but he’d gotten her to the ground alive, so that counted for something.
With his face an expressionless mask, Zander grasped her arm with confidence like he’d done this a million times before. First, his fingertips pressed to her wrist, checking her pulse no doubt to monitor blood flow, then almost before she even realized it, both his thumbs pressed on the lump on her arm, and one searing second of agony later the bump was gone.
Panting through the pain, Lucy somehow managed to cling to consciousness, although the world did go a little gray around the edges.
Zander’s fingers squeezed hers lightly before he grabbed a bandage and began to wrap her arm from wrist to elbow. “You did good, sassy girl. Didn't even scream.”
“You didn't give me time.” She managed the small joke as she slumped back into her seat. From this angle, she spotted what she’d been looking for before. “Hey, it’s my cell phone. Can you grab it for me? If it survived and we can somehow get reception,we can call Prey, and you can give them the coordinates of where we were just before we crashed.”
They weren't all that far away from San Diego. If Prey sent out a helo right away, she could be home in her bed tonight, or at least in the hospital if her arm needed surgery.
Once he was finished securing her bandage, Zander did indeed stoop to scoop up her phone.
But instead of handing it to her, or checking himself to see if there was reception, he dropped it back onto the floor of the plane and stomped it under his foot.
January 21st
10:56 A.M.
“What are you doing?”Lucy shrieked. “Why would you do that?”
Because I can't let you call anyone.
Because if anyone knows you're alive your life will be as good as over.
Because no one can know we survived until I get you where I need to take you.
None of those were the answer Zander gave aloud. If Lucy learned the truth, it would ruin everything he had worked so hard for.
There was no way he was going to let that happen.
Although by the deadly look the blonde was shooting him, it was going to be hell keeping Lucy around and holding onto his secrets.